There’s happy hour, and then there’s
OMG-this-is-a-great-deal hour. The
latter happens at Corte Madera’s
Brick & Bottle Monday through Friday, 4: 30–7 p.m. It’s a true win-win
concept. Restaurants get to fill their
seats before the official dinner hour
and diners can save a little cash by
showing up early and ordering off a
limited menu. But here we’re not talking mixed nuts; we’re talking Michelin-star-worthy noshings. Executive chef
Scott Howard earned a star in both
2012 and 2013 for his inventive menu.
Popular happy hour items include a
beet salad with French green lentils,
pecorino, arugula and aged sherry vinaigrette for $6; the pimiento cheeseburger with pickled cabbage slaw,
chili, pimiento cheese and fries for
$15; and the smoked gouda orzo “mac
’n’ cheese” with smoked bacon and
oyster mushrooms for $8. All beers
on tap are $4, wine by the glass is $5
and select cocktails are $6. This is one
happy hour that will put a smile on
your face. brickandbottle.com

47 HOPMONK TAVERN 224 Vintage Way (Novato), 415.892.6200,

hopmonk.com

Whether it’s been a long hard day of
work or it’s just a nice weekend, nothing
beats meeting up with a few friends for
a beer. In Marin, we are lucky enough to
have a wide variety of places to grab a
cold one, and these establishments all
brew their own so you needn’t drink the
same beer twice.